My Riot was a cute, quick graphic novel. Set in the 90's grunge era, it follows Val as she goes through a transformation from a ballet dancer, dieting and smoking, on her instructors says to get to that goal weight - to being a part of the trio known as The Proper Ladies.

I enjoyed the graphic novel, it was cute and the story was overall good, it just felt a bit rushed and unfinished at times. Overall a quick, enjoyable read.

Thank you to the publisher for providing me with a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

While I related to Val in her dancer turned concert/band loving self, I was a bit too young for the Riot Grrl time, so I didn't know how much I'd enjoy it.

Thankfully I did enjoy this coming of age story of 17 year old Val. Her inner monologue was not unlike other teenagers and the issues she deals with are no different than what I went through when I was her age, and even the kids of today.

I also appreciated that it showcased supportive parents. Even though they're not perfect, it's refreshing to see a healthy relationship rather than a broken one among someone with so much angst inside.

The artwork is beautiful and you can really feel the energy coming off the page. I was transported back to jumping around at concerts without a care in the world.

I gave this graphic novel 4 stars, however, as I felt many of the more interesting parts were rushed. And besides the parental relationship, I wasn't heavily invested in the outcomes of the friendships and romantic relationships in the book.

<i>My Riot</i> tells the story of Val, a teenage ballerina in the '90s. Overwhelmed by the pressure to maintain a certain "lady-like" personality, be a certain weight, and conform to her parents' conservative rules, Val must evaluate who she truly is and what she actually wants. It is within the punk music scene that she finally finds the freedom she craves; even though she's never picked up a guitar before, she starts a riot grrrl band with two other people, which becomes an instant success.

Even if you aren't that big on punk music, or specifically riot grrrl punk, <i>My Riot</i> is for everyone. It's honest, it's angry, it's down to earth in the best way possible. You don't need to be familiar with mosh pits and rioting, or even ballet, to appreciate Val's messy coming-of-age. <b>There's such a familiar sense of teenage anger and mistakes that couples so well with the themes of injustice, gender roles, body image, and general societal expectations--and it is incredibly empowering.</b> Even though Val made quite a few blunders, I was cheering her on the whole time as she fumbled her way through self-discovery.

However, if you are familiar with the punk scene, you definitely should not miss out on this one. <b>This graphic novel was exactly what I've been desperate to find since I discovered punk in middle school.</b> Val comes to love punk in the same way that I'm sure many others have in their teen years. I'd like to emphasize again the excellent portrayal of teenage anger and frustration--it was just showcased so wonderfully in <i>My Riot</i> as an important factor in breaking apart from the often harmful expectations that are thrust upon young girls. I also thought it was fun to see references to bands that I grew up with--Black Flag, Bikini Kill, Sleater-Kinney, you name it. I think I might have been living a bit vicariously through Val. I was both surprised and thrilled that punk was portrayed in multiple lights. Even though there were plenty of characters who drank and smoked (which punk is often associated with), this was the first time I've seen a straightedge punk person being explicitly represented in fiction. As someone who identifies with the straightedge punk culture, I really appreciated this.

Overall, <i>My Riot</i> is a raw, inspiring graphic novel about friendship, first loves, parent woes, and dangerous societal expectations, all tied together beautifully through the power of music. I highly recommend this one to anyone who loves messy yet strong characters who have learned to use their anger as a tool for self-betterment.

Potential trigger warnings: eating disorders, some violence, sexism, slut-shaming, drinking/smoking, teenage sex, mentioning of abortion

I thoroughly enjoyed the story of an awkward teenager who finds her passion. Val, a 17-year-old taking ballet classes, finds that she doesn't fit in at ballet and is made to feel bad about her body. She eventually meets a new friend and they decide to start a band together. Neither one of them knows how to play, but they want to rebel a bit. Soon Val drops ballet, cuts her hair, and morphs into a riot grrl.

For anyone who was a teenager in the 90s or is a teenager now, My Riot should hit the spot. The drawings are great, the characters are interesting, and it's a fun story.

*Disclaimer: I received this book for free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.


Despite the fact that this graphic novel touches on eating disorders, body image, race relations and sexism, this is a light yet empowering read about the power of music, particularly the messy kind of punk that grows from nothing and is done for fun rather than money.

Set in the 1990s, this reminded me of all of the bands I grew up loving from that era and made me regret not going to many gigs when I was younger. Val was a flawed protagonist that made mistakes but I loved her determination; she let things knock her back at points but it never took her too long to bounce back and stand up for herself.

The only negative I could say about this graphic novel is that the pacing is a little strange. I loved the slow development that happens for the first two thirds of the book. However, I felt that the final third seemed too easy, too convenient. The writer skips over significant portions of the characters' lives and although I understand that this was to show that people can make their own happiness, it felt rushed towards the end.

Overall I really enjoyed this and have found a new illustrator to follow in Emmett Helen. I love their illustration style and will be looking out for any other graphic novels they publish in future.

4 out of 5 stars!

plot: set in the 90s, val, a teenage ballerina, is longing for a better place in life, than to starve for her next ballet performance. she's lucky to find a new friend, who loves punk rock as much as she does. they form 'riot grrrl' together. featuring new experiences, lots of concerts, and angry, conservative parents.

3/5🌟: this graphic novel was enjoyable to read, but still a bit over the place. there's a lot of talk about eating disorders, which is important, but i wish there would have been more criticism from literally any character to be honest, than val just not taking part in ballet classes anymore. while you can see a lot of issues regarding bodies, drugs etc. being mirrored in the characters, they don't really talk about it at all.
the story was highly unrealistic, their band got famous in no time, but i guess i can excuse that for the story's sake. val's mum goes crazy, when she thinks val is having sex, but lets her go on a world wide tour. it just didn't make sense to me. nevertheless the illustrations were wonderful and definitely gave me a 90s vibe. i also loved that val's best friend was shown with body hair and thick thighs, but again, why didn't they talk about it? i expected a little more..


thanks to netgalley i received an early access digital copy in exchange for an honest opinion.

Thank you, NetGalley and Oni Press for providing an ARC.

I enjoyed this punk-rock feminist coming-of-age story about Val, a ballerina turned riot girl in 1991. The story is engaging and I really felt for Val during her awful ballerina days. It was amazing to watch her overcome that toxic environment for something better.

The art is a quick and rough style with the coloring emphasizing a collage or zine look. The monochromatic coloring works well as the main color will change based on the scene instead of using one color the entire book. In the beginning, I thought drawings of faces and bodies were a little inconsistent, but the art improved as the book goes on, almost like as Val becomes more confident about herself, the artwork gets stronger.

Note that this is not a book for kids. There is a lot of cussing and sexual activity.

What a great story! I loved watching Val's growth. The illustrations are fabulous and are a perfect fit for the story. I loved it! Cant wait to share it with my teens.

This fast-paced exploration of the 90s counter-culture follows Val, a teenage girl who feels constricted by the life she has shaped around training to become a ballerina. When Val befriends loud and rebellious Kat she finds herself swept up into the world of punk rock. There she finds freedom from the uptight constraints of her daily life. The girls, along with their friend Rudie form their own band, The Proper Ladies, and find their voice within the growing riot grrrl movement.

I loved the vibrant, edgy style of this graphic novel, foud both in the story and the art. Val's journey of self-discovery was exciting. It felt like I was riding that wave right alongside her. And the ending was unexpected but completely satisfying. I did feel a little discomfort near the beginning of the story when Val was displaying some unhealthy behaviors, like smoking and disordered eating, as a result of her ballet instructor's mistreatment. But these behaviors are confronted by Val herself as harmful on-page.

I have a soft spot for punk rock. This is a phenomenal story about a girl finding herself and embracing it. Amazing artwork, well paced writing, and dammit Val is crazy likable. I cannot wait to hold a physical copy in my hands!!

I received a e-ARC of My Riot through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

TW for: body issues and eating disorders.

I really didn't know what to expect when I requested My Riot I was hoping for a cool and fun 90's inspired graphic novel, and you know what that is exactly what I got and so much more! My Riot follows a girl Val while she not only tries to figure out who she is but has also started a punk band with her best friends during the height of the 90's punk rock riot grrrl movement.

I loved seeing just how much Val grew as a person through the whole story and just much punk can open up a person in to not only finding who they are but accepting it as well.

As someone who was punk in her teen years I loved this whole comic so much the story is amazing and just so relatable for girls no matter when they grew up. The art is freaking amazing, seriously it was hands down my favorite part even though I loved the story as well.

Thank you so much to both Oni Press and NetGalley for letting me read this!

A newfound favourite! MY RIOT is a quiet yet powerful coming of age about a ballerina turned punk star that explores themes of defying societal expectations, standing up for yourself, refusing to perpetuate unhealthy behaviours instilled by society onto young women, as well as feminism, all set to the backdrop of the iconic Riot Grrrl movement.
MY RIOT is a complex, compelling exploration of growing up and establishing your own identity in spite of all the ways the world around you might try to define you. This graphic novel sets the personal against a larger political background and expresses the subtle ways one might adopt their own personal riots in times of general change.
This had everything - the heart, the guts, the glamour. The illustrations were also a fantastic addition to the story and really brought it all together. I LOVED IT.

I can remember the pivotal moment when I realised back in 1991 that there was more to music than cheesy yet handsome boys bands, I had stepped in to the local newspaper shop as a 13 year old looking for a copy of Smash Hits (RIP) to feed my need for all things pop.

They didn’t have it.

They did have however a copy of the Melody Maker (RIP) and on the front cover was blonde bombshell Wendy James from Transvision Vamp, I was intrigued and I bought it, then the following week another and then another.

I read band interviews, gig reviews and blow by blow accounts of their latest EP’s and LP’s, I longed for a jangly Rickenbacker guitar (despite not being able to play) and when female bands from the States popped up, I wanted to be Kat Bjelland from Babes in Toyland, Courtney Love, (I still cry at Miss World) and Kristin or Tanya from Throwing Muses. Their music was so raw and they where singing about angsty shit, they had guitars and wore babydoll dresses, I was hooked.

I grew older and my love of all things Indie never went away, it just downloaded itself on to iPods and iPhones, my taste in music did widen but play me Gigantic by the Pixies and I am transported back to a time when I longed to be a rock star. Now I am a 41 year old mother of two daughters who love K-Pop and J-Pop.

When I saw the synopsis for the graphic novel My Riot I knew I had to read it. It follows a trio of young misfit girls as they try and find their way in the nineties world. The main character is Val, a would be ballerina who finds herself deemed too heavy to perform, she starts smoking, barely eating and making herself sick when she does, changing herself into something that someone else wants.

She cracks, she rebels and she finds herself in the company of Kat and Rudie, two kick ass girls who don’t conform, she is smitten with her new friends and along the way she picks up a guitar and music is made. Bad music! They get better, they call themselves the Proper Ladies and they slowly build up a fan base, they go from being the support to being the headline act, they don’t sing about fluffy unicorns and rainbows they sing about the pill, they sing about fucking, they sing about everything they love and hate, they rock.

These girls are part of a movement, they are riot grrls and they speak volumes.

My Riot really transported me back to the halcyon days of the early nineties, I remember how awe inspiring the riot grrl movement was. It was empowering to see so many strong women kicking ass and My Riot really does embrace this in every page. Yes they are girls, they have feelings, they fall in love, they fall out of love, they argue, they make up but my god they are powerful.

Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

My Riot is about a trio of teen girls team up to form a rock band and shake off society's expectations of what it means to be a young woman coming of age in the modern world.

I haven't read many graphic books but I did enjoy this one. I liked the feminist tone of this book as well as how it tried to depict the pressures that teenagers face thanks to body shaming. It brought back memories of the rebellious teenage years.

I just felt that the last few pages and the ending was slightly rushed.

Overall a fun and quick read!

Thank You NetGalley and Oni Press for this ARC!

I went into this book looking for a short, enjoyable, forgettable read and it didn't take me a page to realize I was about to be amazed.
The art is absolutely perfect for this story, filled with diverse body types and each character having their own fashion sense.
I really enjoyed that this story was about more than being a teen or trying to find success or something that happened once but was immediately solved because the world is a just and fair place. This is a story about finding happiness inside yourself and feeling comfortable and satisfied in your own skin and place.
Val's coming of age is still one of the big themes, how she went from being seen as a child to reclaim her mind and body from the rest of the world and how that wasn't something that just happened one day and then it was over, the ending prettily wrapped with a bow. This is Punk, there are no pretty bows!
Val is more than a good girl confused with her changing body and mystified by boys: she has passions, she is insecure, she makes mistakes, she is callous, she feels regret, she apologizes, she empathizes, she changes, she grows.
The fact that this book so accurately portrays how it feels to be a girl and is written by a man only makes it better and goes to show that you don't have to write characters that are only like you.
The only bad thing I have to say about this book is that I wish there was more of it: I wish there was an entire series told through the viewpoint of her bandmates spanning years and years because I think there is a lot to be written about them and I would really enjoy reading about how Kat, the plus-sized drummer that didn't fit the ideals of beauty and behavior for a girl or Rude Rudie, the black butch bassist, who people continuously try to look down upon and erase from the band felt and how their experiences differed.
I adore that one of the biggest themes in this book was sisterhood and women supporting each other's art and ideas, how Punk is about more than destroying things, how fringe movements are often the only ones where ostracized people can find support and respect, how adults don't always give good advice, how sex can be used as a weapon against young women, how art is a way to bring us all closer.
Thank you to Oni Press and NetGalley for this DRC.

My Riot is a lovely coming of age graphic novel about a seventeen year old Val, who is very much tired of her ballerina life. She feels constricted and constantly judged about her weight and wants to do something that she enjoys and likes! So along with her best friend, she creates a punk band and soon rise to fame.

It's such a heartwarming story about growing up, female friendships and realising what you want to do. The art was lovely and on point, head a color color coordination.

Val and her best friend was amazing and I loved seeing their friendship blossom. I loved how we see Val get so conscious of herself and lose a little balance. And I disliked Jack so much because he was such a douche. Honestly, ugh.

I just felt like the story was a little over the place towards the end. It was rushed, what with the band getting local gigs to touring the world and leaving home. It was good, hopeful but so rushed.

The end was sweet too. But again, a little rushed, compared to the beautiful and steady beginning. Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the e-arc. All views expressed are mine.

A coming of age tale set in the riot grrrl 90s, that succumbs to a glut of clichés, which makes the whole thing feel a bit fake.

Time has to be compressed to tell a story, of course, but here it feels like every possible band life/coming of age cliché happens in quick succession. The new band has barely rehearsed, and here's their first performance! There's a reporter from the local rag there, who instantly publishes a positive piece on the band! Val (our main character) is in ballet class, where she is told to lose weight to qualify, so Val almost instantly acquires an eating disorder! She then quits her ballet class, and the eating disorder is never mentioned again.
Val's mother freaks out when she thinks her daughter is having sex. A couple of chapters later she thinks it's okay for her 17-year-old daughter to drive across America.

It all feels weightless and unimportant, it all has too little impact, and for me makes the whole story feel unrealistic.

It doesn't help that I feel Val doesn't talk like a 17-year-old. Sometimes the writing feels overwritten, leaning too much into prose. There's quite a lot of talk about music, but it's nothing you haven't heard or read before.

Val has a best friend, Kat, who she sets up her band with. We learn pretty much nothing about Kat, which feels really weird. At that age your friends are everything, they're your life - especially when you're in a band with them.

I did enjoy the art, which has a messiness that feels perfect for a 90s era comic.

If you're looking for a coming of age story, or a band story, I'd say you can do better on both fronts.

This was okay. I didn't particularly like the fat shaming in the beginning but I get where it was coming from. I really enjoyed the artwork in this graphic novel too!

I'd definitely try other books by her in the future.

2 stars.

I think the first thing that has to be said about "My Riot" is that it is exactly what I wanted it to be.
"My Riot" is the coming-of-age Riot Grrrl graphic novel that we all need. Set in the 90s it covers the transition of the ballerina Val struggling with the weight loss culture of the sport to a badass Riot Grrrl frontwoman, who writes body-positive songs instead of fasting to reach her ideal ballet weight.
The art and story are equally amazing and Rick Spears and Emmett Helen deserve equal praise for this.
Reading "My Riot" has the side effect that you really want to start your own band and write brutally honest lyrics to scream at an audience.

4.75 Stars ( I received an e-arc from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review)

I loved this coming of age graphic novel about female friendship, discovering what you want, and just the general angst that comes with being a teenager. Val is training to be a ballerina but lately has been questioning if she really wants to continue in such a hypercritical environment. She meets Kat randomly one day, and they quickly end up becoming close friends, with Kat introducing her to various feminist riot girl rock. From then on Val slowly comes into her own, meeting boys, attending rock concerts, discovering her style and randomly starting a band. This story can be a bit silly and out there at times but has a lot of relatable content, I was reminded of some of my own teenage experience. Feminist, fun and freaking awesome!